History key terms

A tax imposed by the king on groups including townspeople and Jewish communities. Jewish communities could be required to pay special tallages whenever the king demanded.

Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, including communities on Cuba and Hispaniola, who initially traded and cooperated with Columbus’s expedition.

A tax on goods imported from another country.

A plantation labour system in which enslaved people received individual daily assignments. Completing these could leave some time for their own subsistence activities, without ending their enslavement.

Money collected by a ruler or government from people or economic activities.

A tax paid in goods rather than money; under the early NEP, peasants supplied grain to the state before selling their remaining surplus.

Tools, equipment and practical processes used to carry out tasks or apply knowledge.

A movement encouraging restraint in, or abstinence from, drinking alcohol; its supporters helped campaign for prohibition.

The sacred enclosure containing a temple and its associated spaces, such as a courtyard and altar.

The Great Temple in Tenochtitlan: a stepped pyramid topped by separate shrines to Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc.

Movement to live somewhere for a limited period rather than to settle permanently.

A person who occupies or farms land belonging to a landlord, usually in return for rent.

A farmer who pays rent to use land owned by someone else.

A person or institution, such as a baron or bishop, holding land directly from the king.

A building containing separate homes for several households, often as flats within a larger block.

The Aztec capital on an island in Lake Texcoco, which served as a centre of imperial government, religion and exchange.

An answer supported by the available evidence but open to revision if further evidence changes the explanation.

The conditions under which someone held land from a lord.

A federal policy intended to end recognition of particular Native American tribes and their special relationship with the United States government.

The growth of the area controlled by a country, through processes such as settlement, conquest, purchase or treaties.

An area governed under United States authority that had not yet become a state. Utah became a US territory in 1850.

The use of fear, violence, arrest and imprisonment to discourage opposition and enforce obedience to a regime.

Violence intended to intimidate a population or influence political decisions, often through attacks on civilians. Global terrorism operates across national borders.

A law passed in 1673 imposing a religious test for public office which excluded Catholics. James, Duke of York’s refusal to take its required oath made his Catholicism publicly known.

A Roman ‘tortoise-shell’ formation in which soldiers held their shields together to protect themselves against missiles.

A bacterial infection that can enter through a wound and cause severe muscle stiffness and spasms.

The widespread attacks launched by the Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army across South Vietnam during the Lunar New Year holiday in January 1968.

A silver coin with a value of four drachmas.

A period of easing hostility between the USA and USSR, during which improved relations and negotiations seemed possible.

The sustained German bombing campaign against British towns and cities that began in September 1940.